True, Bridgestone tyres are on the fastest bike -
Casey Stoner's Marlboro Ducati. But then there are four riders mounted on Michelin's resurgent rubber -
Jorge Lorenzo (Fiat Yamaha),
James Toseland and
Colin Edwards (Tech 3 Yamahas) and
Andrea Dovizioso (JiR Team Scot Honda) – before we find the next Bridgestone flag-bearer.
And even that isn't Rossi: it's
Alex de Angelis on Fausto Gresini's San Carlo Honda. Valentino is buried in ninth place, a hefty 0.953 seconds slower than Stoner. After ruling MotoGP and the previous 500cc class for three decades, it was obvious that Michelin were not about to bung all that painfully acquired wisdom into la poubelle (the waste-paper bin) and abandon the stage to
Bridgestone.
Vale and Bridgestone may come up with a more competitive setup over the weekend here at Losail, but it does seem that whatever is blocking the Italian's attempts to beat Stoner, Michelin tyres are not the core part of the problem.
And Where Will Vale Go in 2009?
It's clear from just the first night of practice at Losail that even the improved Yamaha YZR-M1, complete with pneumatic-valve technology, is mopping its brow at the end of the straight in its desperate attempts to keep up with Ducati's desmodromic motors.
The Yamaha is still some 8kph short of the Desmosedici's best - a gap too great at
MotoGP's intense level of competition.
So if Valentino were to jump again at the end of 2008, but this time to a new manufacturer, where would he go?
All Italy would love him to join Ducati - but Stoner and new signing
Marco Melandri are locked into two-year contracts. Kawasaki or Suzuki? Nah, they haven't got a recent heritage of fighting for championships.
